Ravi Shankar Prasad cornered the Congress over a range of issues, including its stand on triple talaq and ‘caste-based politics’. (Express file photo)

Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad Wednesday said that the government cannot hold a debate in Parliament on demonetisation just to satisfy ego of Congress president Rahul Gandhi. Prasad hailed the central government for measures like demonetisation and GST and said 1.5 lakh people deposited Rs 5 lakh crore after demonetisation.

“Debate on demonetisation cannot be organised for ego satisfaction of Rahul Gandhi. It would be better if the discussion is based on information. They made it an issue in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh elections and had to face defeat,” he told reporters at a press conference here.

Prasad said the number of tax payers doubled in the last four years. Only 3.82 crore people used to file tax in 2013-14 compared to 6.86 crore in 2017-18. Tax collection, which was Rs 6.38 lakh crore in 2013-14, shot up to Rs 10.20 lakh crore in 2017-18. Nearly 1.10 crore traders, including 49 lakh new traders started filing tax after the Goods and Services Tax (GST) was implemented, he said.

The Union Law and Justice minister cornered the Congress over a range of issues, including its stand on triple talaq and “caste-based politics”. He said the Congress’s desperation was quite evident as the parliamentary elections are approaching and this is why the party was asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s caste. “Does the Congress no more trust the issue of development?” Prasad said.

The Congress’s dual face was exposed when its leader Kamalnath said that it will be a big loss for the party if Muslims did not vote for the party and on the other hand the party remains silent when religion-based reservation is proposed in Telangana, he said, referring to Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s proposal for 12 per cent reservation to Muslims in public educational institutes and government jobs in the state.

The Congress, which talks about justice for women, should make its stand clear on triple talaq issue, he said, alleging the party was stalling the bill in Rajya Sabha.

Responding to a question on bringing an ordinance on a Ram temple in Ayodhya, he said that the government wants its solution under the constitutional ambit and is in favour that the matter be heard soon.

Prasad hailed Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government in Rajasthan, saying pulling the state out of BIMARU category was the biggest achievement of the ruling dispensation. BIMARU is an acronym for states with poor socio-economic parameter.